How to survive Hits and damage over time

A Hit is one discrete damage event. Damage over time applies damage continuously or repeatedly without Hitting. Ailments and ground effects can deal damage over time after an earlier Hit, but the later damage is a separate event and does not inherit defences that apply only to Hits.

• The damaging effect is identified as a Hit, damage over time, or a Hit followed by damage over time.
• The later ailment or ground damage is not being treated as another Hit.
• Any modifier that explicitly says Hit or damage over time is applied only to that event type.

Next identify whether the event is an Attack or Spell and whether it deals Physical, Fire, Cold, Lightning, or Chaos damage. Source and damage type are separate facts. An Attack can deal elemental damage, while a Spell can deal Physical damage. Match each defence to the wording it actually covers.

• Attack or Spell source is identified independently from damage type.
• Every damage type in a mixed-damage event is considered.
• A defence is not assumed to apply merely because it works against another skill with the same source.

Evasion normally prevents Attack Hits from connecting. It does not normally avoid Spell Hits, and it does not remove damage over time that is already active. Read any skill or modifier that extends Evasion to another event literally instead of treating Evasion as universal avoidance.

• The incoming event is an Attack Hit or has explicit wording that allows Evasion.
• A Spell Hit is not assumed to be evadable without an explicit exception.
• Existing damage over time is not being counted as an evadable event.

Block applies only to eligible Hits and uses the character's Block rules, including any directional requirement or explicit source restriction. Blocking a Hit does not prevent separate damage over time, and it does not remove an ailment or ground effect that is already active.

• The event is a Hit covered by the current Block rules.
• The attacker is inside any required blocking angle.
• Damage over time is handled separately from the blocked Hit.

Armour normally mitigates Physical damage from Hits and is more effective against smaller Hits than larger ones. It is not generic protection from every source of Physical damage. Resistances reduce damage of their matching type unless an effect says otherwise, so check each type in a mixed-damage event and keep Hit-only and damage-over-time rules separate.

• Armour is applied only to damage it is allowed to mitigate.
• The size of the Physical Hit is considered when judging Armour effectiveness.
• Fire, Cold, Lightning, and Chaos portions use their matching Resistances.

Energy Shield is a resource layer that normally takes eligible damage before Life. Some damage and effects can bypass it. Recharge begins only after the character has avoided the interruptions defined by the current Energy Shield rules, so repeated small damage can keep recharge from starting even when the maximum value is high.

• The damaging effect does not explicitly bypass Energy Shield.
• Current Energy Shield was available when the event occurred.
• Recharge delay and repeated interruptions are considered separately from maximum Energy Shield.

Deflection mitigates eligible Attack Hit damage after the attack connects. It is not Block, does not turn the event into a blocked Hit, and does not prevent damage over time. Check the exact Deflection chance and mitigation wording instead of adding it to Block chance.

• The event is an eligible Attack Hit.
• Deflection chance is not added to Block chance.
• Damage over time and Spell Hits are not assumed to be covered.

If damage still feels unexplained, classify the failure rather than adding one generic defence. Large Physical Hits can exceed the reduction expected from Armour, Spell Hits can bypass ordinary Evasion, damage over time can continue through avoidance and Block, low Resistance increases matching damage, and repeated damage can prevent Energy Shield recharge.

• The failure is classified as a large Hit, an uncovered source, an uncovered damage type, damage over time, or a depleted recovery layer.
• The proposed defence names the event it actually fixes.
• No fixed gearing target is treated as universal for every area, modifier, or boss.